Electrical safety codes require grounding of externally mounted antennas, e.g., satellite antennas. Satellite antennas are typically earth grounded through a coaxial cable that is electrically coupled to a ground block or other grounded location outside a home. Any hazardous or excess currents contacting the satellite antenna (e.g., a lightning strike) flow to the earth ground rather than entering a home's electrical system. However, if a satellite antenna is ungrounded and accumulates electrical charge, for example charge induced by nearby lightning, wind friction or other mechanism, struck by lightning, then the current generated by the accumulated charge may enter a home's electrical system through the coaxial cable connected to the satellite antenna. This can potentially damage equipment within the home, or worse, injure the inhabitants of the home.
It is often problematic to earth ground a satellite antenna. For many structures, an earth ground path is not readily available near the installation location of a satellite antenna. For example, many apartment buildings and other multiple-dwelling structures do not have ground block connections available near each unit of the structure. As a result, a satellite antenna cannot be installed at the structure without violating electrical codes and compromising the safety of the inhabitants of the structure. Thus, a significant number of structures are unavailable to satellite television providers.